Sign up to receive free email alerts when patent applications with chosen keywords are publishedSIGN UP

Abstract:

A system and method for presenting media services is disclosed. A system
that incorporates teachings of the present disclosure may include, for
example, a media system having a controller element that contextually
associates a plurality of portals with a corresponding plurality of
multimedia broadcast channels as an aggregated service offering. Other
embodiments are disclosed.

Claims:

1. A computer-readable storage medium in a portal, comprising computer
instructions for presenting at a media system as an aggregated service
selectable media services of the portal contextually associated with a
multimedia broadcast channel.

2. The storage medium of claim 1, comprising computer instructions for
presenting at the media system the selectable media services concurrently
with a media program supplied by the multimedia broadcast channel.

3. The storage medium of claim 1, wherein the media system comprises a
media device and a media controller that manages operations of the media
device, and wherein the storage medium comprises computer instructions
for:presenting at the media controller the selectable media services;
andpresenting at the media device a media program supplied by the
multimedia broadcast channel uninterrupted by the selectable media
services presented at the media controller.

4. The storage medium of claim 3, comprising computer instructions
for:receiving from the media controller a media service request
associated with a selection from the selectable media services;
andpresenting at the media device one among the media service requested
concurrently with the media program, and the media service requested in
place of the media program.

5. The storage medium of claim 1, comprising computer instructions for
adapting in whole or in part the selectable media services responsive to
a first media program supplied by the multimedia broadcast channel
transitioning to a second media program.

6. The storage medium of claim 5, comprising computer instructions
for:receiving from the multimedia broadcast channel metadata associated
with the second media program; andadapting in whole or in part the
selectable media services according to said metadata.

7. The storage medium of claim 5, wherein the adapted selectable media
services are contextually associated with the second media program.

8. The storage medium of claim 5, comprising computer instructions
for:receiving media programming selections collected from at least one
media device;detecting a use pattern from the media programming
selections; andadapting in whole or in part the selectable media services
according to said use pattern.

9. The storage medium of claim 8, wherein the use pattern corresponds to
one among demographic and psychographic patterns.

10. The storage medium of claim 1, wherein the multimedia broadcast
channel is supplied by one among digital and analog media programming
systems.

11. The storage medium of claim 1, wherein the selectable media services
comprise at least two among a group of media services corresponding to a
programming guide, selectable prerecorded media content, one or more chat
rooms, one or more contests, a polling service, a forum, a search engine,
and one or more games, the group of media services contextually
associated with the multimedia broadcast channel.

12. The storage medium of claim 1, wherein the media system comprises a
Set-Top Box (STB), a media device and a media controller that manages
operations of the media device by way of the STB, and wherein the
multimedia broadcast channel distributes media programs to the STB
according to at least one among multicast and unicast data transmissions.

13. A media system, comprising a controller element that contextually
associates a plurality of portals with a corresponding plurality of
multimedia broadcast channels as an aggregated service offering.

14. The media system of claim 13, wherein each of the plurality of portals
supply the media system selectable media services contextually associated
with a corresponding one of the plurality of multimedia broadcast
channels.

15. The media system of claim 13, wherein the controller element presents
a media program supplied by a select one of the plurality of multimedia
broadcast channels responsive to receiving a broadcast channel selection
request.

16. The media system of claim 15, wherein the controller element presents
selectable media services of a select one of the plurality of portals
corresponding to the selected multimedia broadcast channel in response to
receiving a request for portal information for the selected multimedia
broadcast channel.

17. The media system of claim 16, wherein the controller element receives
the request responsive to detecting a selection from the plurality of
multimedia broadcast channels to a new broadcast channel.

18. The media system of claim 17, wherein the controller element presents
the new broadcast channel responsive to at least one more requests for
said new broadcast channel.

19. The media system of claim 13, wherein the media system comprises at
least one among an Internet Protocol Television (IPTV) subsystem, a
Set-Top Box (STB), a media device and a media controller that manages
operations of the media device.

20. The media system of claim 13, wherein the selectable media services
comprise at least two among a group of media services corresponding to a
programming guide, selectable prerecorded media content, one or more chat
rooms, one or more contests, a polling service, a forum, a search engine,
and one or more games, the group of media services contextually
associated with the multimedia broadcast channel.

21. The media system of claim 13, wherein the controller element receives
information for contextually associating the plurality of portals with
the plurality of multimedia broadcast channels.

22. The media system of claim 21, wherein the information comprises at
least one among a list that identifies an association between the
plurality of portals and the plurality of multimedia broadcast channels,
subscriber information, and access information for each of said plurality
of portals.

23. The media system of claim 21, wherein said information is
incrementally collected as portal information from a select one of the
plurality of multimedia broadcast channels.

24. A method, comprising supplying to a media services distributor a
portal contextually associated with the multimedia broadcast channel for
distribution to media systems as an aggregated service.

25. The method of claim 24, comprising adding media services contextually
associated with the multimedia broadcast channel to the portal.

26. A method, comprising distributing an aggregated service comprising
media programs of a multimedia broadcast channel and a portal
contextually associated with the multimedia broadcast channel.

Description:

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

[0001]The present disclosure relates generally to media services and more
specifically to a system and method for presenting media services.

BACKGROUND

[0002]For a period of time it has been possible to browse the Internet on
a television set connected to a set-top box with Internet access.
Generally, when a user viewing a TV channel (e.g., Nickelodeon®) wants
to explore content on the Internet, the user transitions away from the
selected channel to another screen with a browser performing navigation
tasks. This scenario and the occasional desire of consumers to avoid
commercials by scanning other TV channels poses a challenge for broadcast
media service providers who want to retain viewership and maintain
advertisement revenues as high as possible.

[0003]A need therefore arises for a system and method for presenting media
services.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0004]FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary embodiment of a communication system;

[0005]FIG. 2 depicts an exemplary embodiment of media portals contextually
associated with a multimedia broadcast channel delivered by the
communication system to subscribers;

[0006]FIG. 3 depicts an exemplary method operating in portions of the
communication system; and

[0007]FIG. 4 is a diagrammatic representation of a machine in the form of
a computer system within which a set of instructions, when executed, may
cause the machine to perform any one or more of the methodologies
discussed herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0008]Embodiments in accordance with the present disclosure provide a
system and method for presenting media services.

[0009]In a first embodiment of the present disclosure, a computer-readable
storage medium in a portal can have computer instructions for presenting
at a media system as an aggregated service selectable media services of
the portal contextually associated with a multimedia broadcast channel.

[0010]In a second embodiment of the present disclosure, a media system can
have a controller element that contextually associates a plurality of
portals with a corresponding plurality of multimedia broadcast channels
as an aggregated service offering.

[0011]In a third embodiment of the present disclosure, a method can
involve supplying to a media services distributor a portal contextually
associated with the multimedia broadcast channel for distribution to
media systems as an aggregated service.

[0012]In a fourth embodiment of the present disclosure, a method can
involve distributing an aggregated service comprising media programs of a
multimedia broadcast channel and a portal contextually associated with
the multimedia broadcast channel.

[0013]FIG. 1 depicts an exemplary embodiment of an IPTV communication
system 100. In a typical IPTV backbone, there is at least one super head
office server (SHS) which receives national media programs from satellite
and/or media servers from service providers of multimedia broadcast
channels. The SHS server forwards IP packets associated with the media
content to video head servers (VHS) via a network of video head offices
(VHO) according to a common multicast communication method. The VHS then
distributes multimedia broadcast programs to commercial and/or
residential buildings 102 housing a gateway 104 (e.g., a residential
gateway or RG) that distributes broadcast signals to receivers such as
Set-Top Boxes (STBs) 108 which in turn present broadcast selections to
media devices 108 such as computers or television units managed in some
instances by a media controller 107 (e.g., an infrared or RF remote
control).

[0014]Unicast traffic can also be exchanged between the STBs 108 and the
subsystems of the IPTV communication system 100 for services such as
video-on-demand (VoD). Although not shown, the aforementioned multimedia
system can also be combined with analog broadcast distributions systems.

[0015]To enhance user experience, the service providers of the broadcast
channels supply multimedia service portals to the communication system
100. In the present illustration, the portals are supplied to the SHS.
However, the portals can also be introduced at other IPTV subsystems such
as the VHO, VHS, LAN, RG 104, STB 106, media device 108, or media
controller 107 by way of an IP network associated with the communication
system 100. Each of these portals is contextually associated with a
select multimedia broadcast channel.

[0016]FIG. 2 depicts an exemplary embodiment 200 of the media portals. In
this illustration, each a portal can aggregate a variety of services that
are contextually associated with a specific broadcast channel. For
example, for the Nickelodeon® channel, the portal can include: a
program guide 204 tailored to said channel; on-demand content 206 of
previously broadcast Nickelodeon® programs; a chat room 208 for
exchanging views on shows, content, characters, etc.; contests 210 to
engage subscribers in competitive events associated with Nickelodeon;
polling services 212 to monitor subscriber needs and biases; forums 214
in which subscribers can join organizations or groups of like-minded
subscribers; a search engine for exploring topics related to Nickelodeon
programs, characters, shows in the making, movies, and so forth; and an
assortment of video games such as a game for Jimmy Neutron®, a game
for Sponge Bob Square Pants®, etc.

[0017]The media channel "N" portal depicted in FIG. 2 is a duplicate copy
of the media channel "1" portal for illustration purposes only. In
practice, it is expected that by contextually tailoring each portal to a
broadcast channel that said portals will vary in the media services they
offer. For example, a C-SPAN viewer may not be interested in games, or
contests. Instead such viewers may want to see media service links for
local, national, and international news. Hence, FIG. 2 in practice would
likely show disparate embodiments for each of the media service portals.

[0018]FIG. 3 depicts an exemplary method 300 operating in portions of the
communication system 100. Method 300 begins with step 302 in which a
number of service providers of one or more multimedia broadcast channels
contextually identifies media services for each of said broadcast
channels (such as shown in FIG. 2). In step 304, each broadcast service
provider aggregates by common means the media services they have
identified into a web services portal which they have assigned to a
corresponding multimedia channel (e.g., a portal for Nickelodeon, a
portal for MTV, a portal for CBS, a portal for CSPAN, and so on).

[0019]Once a portal has been established for each multimedia channel, each
broadcast service provider supplies in step 306 to a media services
distributor (e.g., Comcast, AT&T) media programming (i.e., regular 24-7
episode programming and advertisements) of a multimedia broadcast channel
and the contextually associated portal for said channel for distribution
to subscribers of the IPTV communication system 100 as an aggregated
service.

[0020]Once the broadcast channels and associated portals have been
distributed, an STB 106 in step 308 can be programmed to monitor a
channel selection directed by a request submitted by a media controller
107. Once a selection is detected, the STB 106 can be programmed to
present in step 310 media programming of the select channel and can as a
background process select the portal that is contextually associated with
said channel for future viewing. The portal selection of step 310 can be
based on metadata that is retrieved by the STB 106 from the broadcast
channel, or by way of provisioning information that is periodically
supplied to the STB by one of the IPTV subsystems of the communication
system 100.

[0021]The metadata or provisioning information can include a table that
associates a channel with its portal, subscription information defining
whether the subscriber can access said portal, and portal information
such as a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) and if desired authentication
data to securely access the portal. The media services distributor can
choose to charge subscribers for supplying contextual portals, or can
provide said services free of charge based on subsidization by the
service providers of the broadcast channels.

[0022]In step 312, the STB 106 can monitor a request for viewing the
portal associated with the selected broadcast channel. This request can
be received as a selection made by a subscriber on the media controller
107 (e.g., selecting a portal button on the remote controller).
Alternatively, the request for the portal can be prompted from detecting
a request to change broadcast channels at step 308. In this embodiment,
the portal can be invoked automatically prior to allowing a change of
broadcast channels as a means to retain viewership with the previously
selected broadcast service provider (e.g., Nickelodeon). The level of
resistance applied by steps 308, 312 to allow a change of broadcast
channels can be varied by the service provider of the IPTV system 100.
That is, to leave the portal once entered the end user can be asked to
request a departure from said portal by way of one or more soft keys
selectable from the media controller 107. This approach effectively
requires at least two or more actions by the end user to effectuate a
switch between broadcast channels. A service provider of the IPTV system
100 can selectively charge fees to broadcast channel service providers
for a level of resistance added to steps 308 and 312 to depart the
contextual portal supplied thereby.

[0023]If the media controller 107 has a display, the STB 106 can be
programmed to present in step 314 the portal service selected at the
media controller 107 without interruption to the media program displayed
at the media device 108. Alternatively, the STB 106 can present the
portal at the media device concurrently with the media program being
viewed. In yet another embodiment, the STB 106 can present the portal at
the media device 107 in place of the media program being viewed. In step
316, the STB 106 monitors for selection of a media service of the portal.
If no selection is made, the STB 106 proceeds to step 320. Otherwise, in
step 318 the STB 106 presents the selected media service at the media
controller 107 or media device 108 according to one of the aforementioned
presentation embodiments of step 314.

[0024]Steps 320-328 can serve as supplemental embodiments to enhance the
media services supplied by the communication system 100. In step 320, for
example, a service provider of a particular broadcast channel can program
its portal web server to monitor a transition between media programs of a
corresponding channel (e.g., Sponge Bob ends and Jimmy Neutron begins).
Upon detecting a program transition such as by receiving at the portal a
message transmitted by the broadcast system, the portal can be programmed
to retrieve metadata in step 322 from the broadcast channel for the new
media program, and adapt in step 324 some or all of the media service
links of the portal to said new media program. By way of steps 320-324,
the portal can adapt itself to offer media links specifically tailored to
a Sponge Bob Square Pants show, while different media service links can
be presented during a Jimmy Neutron show.

[0025]In yet another supplemental embodiment, the plurality of portals can
be programmed to receive in step 326 programming selections collected by
the IPTV communication system 100 over a suitable periodic cycle (per
day, per week, or month). The collected data can be processed by the
portal using any common or future pattern recognition method (e.g.,
regression analysis) that can detect and/or predict use patterns. The use
patterns can be categorized as demographic and/or psychographic patterns
of subscribers, which the portals can utilize to adapt media services of
said portal in step 328 to better match subscriber demand.

[0026]To more readily target subscribers, the portals can also selectively
perform pattern recognition analysis on like broadcast channels (Disney
versus Nickelodeon versus Cartoon Channel) to detect subscriber needs of
a specific category and age group. Generally, the program selections
collected from subscribers can be anonymous. For certain subscribers who
accept program selection monitoring as an enhanced service feature, the
portal can be programmed to adapt to each subscriber who has opted into
this form of monitoring. In this latter case, the STB 106 in steps
310-318 can be provisioned to access a portal account that is tailored to
the subscriber. Collecting program selections and distributing such
information to the portals can be an additional source of revenue for the
media distributor.

[0027]From step 328, method 300 repeats the foregoing steps starting at
step 308. Note that once an initial broadcast channel is selected after,
for example, power cycle of a media device 108, step 308 adapts so that
step 312 proceeds step 308 when no program selections are detected. At
steps 312, 320 and 326 portal requests, program transitions, and user
pattern detection are processed at periodic intervals while monitoring
program selections in steps 308.

[0028]From the enhanced presentation techniques of method 300 broadcast
channel service providers can reasonably expect to augment the number of
viewers who select their channel, and the duration of viewership. This
helps broadcast service providers to increase advertisement revenue from
sponsors who are willing to pay higher fees to attract consumers. Media
distributors (like AT&T) can also benefit from method 300 by charging
broadcast channel service providers for distributing contextual portals
to its subscribers and for supplying subscriber behavior such as in step
326. In some instances, the media distributors can also host web servers
for the portals as a way to provide a unified look and feel to its
subscribers, and to derive additional revenue from the broadcast service
providers.

[0029]From the foregoing descriptions, it would be evident to an artisan
with ordinary skill in the art that the aforementioned embodiments can be
modified, reduced, or enhanced without departing from the scope and
spirit of the claims described below. For example, some or a portion of
the processing described for method 300 can be redistributed at different
portions of communication system 100. Also, customized contextual portals
can be supplied to each VHO rather than the SHS as a means for broadcast
service providers to present focused regional or State services. The STBs
106 can also be programmed to perform program selection collection and
pattern recognition detection which can be supplied to the portals for
adaptation in steps 326-328. The supplemental embodiments of steps
320-328 can be removed or modified without adversely affecting operations
of the present disclosure. These are but a few examples of how the
embodiments described herein can be updated without altering the scope of
the claims below. Accordingly, the reader is directed to the claims for a
fuller understanding of the breadth and scope of the present disclosure.

[0030]FIG. 4 depicts an exemplary diagrammatic representation of a machine
in the form of a computer system 400 within which a set of instructions,
when executed, may cause the machine to perform any one or more of the
methodologies discussed above. In some embodiments, the machine operates
as a standalone device. In some embodiments, the machine may be connected
(e.g., using a network) to other machines. In a networked deployment, the
machine may operate in the capacity of a server or a client user machine
in server-client user network environment, or as a peer machine in a
peer-to-peer (or distributed) network environment.

[0031]The machine may comprise a server computer, a client user computer,
a personal computer (PC), a tablet PC, a laptop computer, a desktop
computer, a control system, a network router, switch or bridge, or any
machine capable of executing a set of instructions (sequential or
otherwise) that specify actions to be taken by that machine. It will be
understood that a device of the present disclosure includes broadly any
electronic device that provides voice, video or data communication.
Further, while a single machine is illustrated, the term "machine" shall
also be taken to include any collection of machines that individually or
jointly execute a set (or multiple sets) of instructions to perform any
one or more of the methodologies discussed herein.

[0032]The computer system 400 may include a processor 402 (e.g., a central
processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU, or both), a main
memory 404 and a static memory 406, which communicate with each other via
a bus 408. The computer system 400 may further include a video display
unit 410 (e.g., a liquid crystal display or LCD), a flat panel, a solid
state display, or a cathode ray tube (CRT)). The computer system 400 may
include an input device 412 (e.g., a keyboard), a cursor control device
414 (e.g., a mouse), a disk drive unit 416, a signal generation device
418 (e.g., a speaker or remote control) and a network interface device
420.

[0033]The disk drive unit 416 may include a machine-readable medium 422 on
which is stored one or more sets of instructions (e.g., software 424)
embodying any one or more of the methodologies or functions described
herein, including those methods illustrated above. The instructions 424
may also reside, completely or at least partially, within the main memory
404, the static memory 406, and/or within the processor 402 during
execution thereof by the computer system 400. The main memory 404 and the
processor 402 also may constitute machine-readable media.

[0034]Dedicated hardware implementations including, but not limited to,
application specific integrated circuits, programmable logic arrays and
other hardware devices can likewise be constructed to implement the
methods described herein. Applications that may include the apparatus and
systems of various embodiments broadly include a variety of electronic
and computer systems. Some embodiments implement functions in two or more
specific interconnected hardware modules or devices with related control
and data signals communicated between and through the modules, or as
portions of an application-specific integrated circuit. Thus, the example
system is applicable to software, firmware, and hardware implementations.

[0035]In accordance with various embodiments of the present disclosure,
the methods described herein are intended for operation as software
programs running on a computer processor. Furthermore, software
implementations can include, but not limited to, distributed processing
or component/object distributed processing, parallel processing, or
virtual machine processing can also be constructed to implement the
methods described herein.

[0036]The present disclosure contemplates a machine readable medium
containing instructions 424, or that which receives and executes
instructions 424 from a propagated signal so that a device connected to a
network environment 426 can send or receive voice, video or data, and to
communicate over the network 426 using the instructions 424. The
instructions 424 may further be transmitted or received over a network
426 via the network interface device 420.

[0037]While the machine-readable medium 422 is shown in an example
embodiment to be a single medium, the term "machine-readable medium"
should be taken to include a single medium or multiple media (e.g., a
centralized or distributed database, and/or associated caches and
servers) that store the one or more sets of instructions. The term
"machine-readable medium" shall also be taken to include any medium that
is capable of storing, encoding or carrying a set of instructions for
execution by the machine and that cause the machine to perform any one or
more of the methodologies of the present disclosure.

[0038]The term "machine-readable medium" shall accordingly be taken to
include, but not be limited to: solid-state memories such as a memory
card or other package that houses one or more read-only (non-volatile)
memories, random access memories, or other re-writable (volatile)
memories; magneto-optical or optical medium such as a disk or tape; and
carrier wave signals such as a signal embodying computer instructions in
a transmission medium; and/or a digital file attachment to e-mail or
other self-contained information archive or set of archives is considered
a distribution medium equivalent to a tangible storage medium.
Accordingly, the disclosure is considered to include any one or more of a
machine-readable medium or a distribution medium, as listed herein and
including art-recognized equivalents and successor media, in which the
software implementations herein are stored.

[0039]Although the present specification describes components and
functions implemented in the embodiments with reference to particular
standards and protocols, the disclosure is not limited to such standards
and protocols. Each of the standards for Internet and other packet
switched network transmission (e.g., TCP/IP, UDP/IP, HTML, and HTTP)
represent examples of the state of the art. Such standards are
periodically superseded by faster or more efficient equivalents having
essentially the same functions. Accordingly, replacement standards and
protocols having the same functions are considered equivalents.

[0040]The illustrations of embodiments described herein are intended to
provide a general understanding of the structure of various embodiments,
and they are not intended to serve as a complete description of all the
elements and features of apparatus and systems that might make use of the
structures described herein. Many other embodiments will be apparent to
those of skill in the art upon reviewing the above description. Other
embodiments may be utilized and derived therefrom, such that structural
and logical substitutions and changes may be made without departing from
the scope of this disclosure. Figures are also merely representational
and may not be drawn to scale. Certain proportions thereof may be
exaggerated, while others may be minimized. Accordingly, the
specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative rather
than a restrictive sense.

[0041]Such embodiments of the inventive subject matter may be referred to
herein, individually and/or collectively, by the term "invention" merely
for convenience and without intending to voluntarily limit the scope of
this application to any single invention or inventive concept if more
than one is in fact disclosed. Thus, although specific embodiments have
been illustrated and described herein, it should be appreciated that any
arrangement calculated to achieve the same purpose may be substituted for
the specific embodiments shown. This disclosure is intended to cover any
and all adaptations or variations of various embodiments. Combinations of
the above embodiments, and other embodiments not specifically described
herein, will be apparent to those of skill in the art upon reviewing the
above description.

[0042]The Abstract of the Disclosure is provided to comply with 37 C.F.R.
§1.72(b), requiring an abstract that will allow the reader to
quickly ascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted
with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the
scope or meaning of the claims. In addition, in the foregoing Detailed
Description, it can be seen that various features are grouped together in
a single embodiment for the purpose of streamlining the disclosure. This
method of disclosure is not to be interpreted as reflecting an intention
that the claimed embodiments require more features than are expressly
recited in each claim. Rather, as the following claims reflect, inventive
subject matter lies in less than all features of a single disclosed
embodiment. Thus the following claims are hereby incorporated into the
Detailed Description, with each claim standing on its own as a separately
claimed subject matter.